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Search Iowa Obituaries
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Obituary guide
How to find an obituary in Iowa
For a recent death, start with the funeral home's website and the Des Moines Register or your local daily's obituary page. For an older death, the State Historical Society of Iowa's newspaper microfilm and digitized papers, along with local library obituary indexes, are the best places to start.
What to have ready
- The person's full name, including a maiden name or nickname
- The approximate date of death and the town or county where they died
- Their age or birth year
- Names of close relatives
Knowing the county narrows your search the most. Most Iowa towns had their own paper.
Where to look, by when the person died
| When the person died | Where to look |
|---|---|
| Last few years | The funeral home's website; the Des Moines Register, The Gazette (Cedar Rapids), Quad-City Times, Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier and Sioux City Journal obituary pages |
| 1990s to recent decades | Des Moines Public Library's newspaper index, which indexes Register obituaries from 1960 to 2020; newspaper databases at your library |
| Older or historic | The State Historical Society of Iowa's newspapers on microfilm and online; local indexes such as Iowa City Public Library and Musser Public Library's Muscatine obituary index; the Iowa Genealogical Society in Des Moines |
| Official death record | See how to order an Iowa death certificate. |
Major newspapers' obituary pages
- Des Moines Register
- The Gazette (Cedar Rapids)
- Quad-City Times (Davenport, on Legacy.com)
- Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier (on Legacy.com)
- Sioux City Journal (on Legacy.com)
Recent listings are open to read. Older articles may need a subscription.
Libraries and archives
- State Historical Society of Iowa has hundreds of Iowa newspaper titles on microfilm, from 1836 to the present, at its research centers in Des Moines and Iowa City. It has digitized more than 400,000 pages for Chronicling America. Your library can borrow reels through interlibrary loan for $6.00 per transaction.
- Des Moines Public Library indexes Des Moines Register obituaries from 1960 to 2020 and Des Moines Tribune obituaries from 1960 to 1982. The library can send copies for a fee.
- Iowa Genealogical Society keeps obituary and vital-records indexes. The full digital collections are for members, but anyone can view the materials at the IGS Library in Des Moines or request copies by email or mail. Fees may apply.
Timeline expectations
- Recent obituaries usually appear online within days, often before the service.
- Digitized coverage varies by town and year. Check which years your town's paper covers.
- Interlibrary loan sends one or two reels at a time.
Tips
- When you request microfilm, give the paper's title, the town and the dates. If you don't know the paper, you can request film for a town and date range.
- Iowa City Public Library's page links several archives, including the Iowa City Press-Citizen index from 1961 on.
- Musser Public Library's Muscatine index covers papers from 1840 on. Ask the library for copies.
Last verified:
Note: Coverage years, fees and web addresses are set by the libraries, archives and newspapers listed and can change. PublicLibraries.com is not affiliated with them.